Thomas Lekfeldt / MOMENT

Two Chinese and one Zambian worker at the construction site of the Ndola National Stadium in Ndola, Zambia, constructed by the Chinese company Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Company (AFECC). The stadium will have a capacity of 40,000 spectators.

PhotoBlog continues to showcase interesting photo projects from Once Magazine on the iPad. In Issue #5, photographer Thomas Lekfeldt takes a look at China's rapid development in Zambia, along with writer Lene Winther, who explains:

Chinese restaurants, language schools, China-financed construction projects, and Chinese storefronts nowadays are always just around the corner. In the past decade, Chinese presence in Zambia has surged. At worst, this trend can be viewed as a political move to feed China’s increasing appetite for natural resources, unlikely to foster sustainable development. At best, it creates jobs and jumpstarts industrialization in a country and continent that desperately need it.

“Chinese investments are good in the sense that they provide employment,” says union leader Rayford Mbulu. “But the next question you have to ask yourself is, ‘Is it decent work?’ If labor laws are tougher in Zambia, these investors will go to South Africa or Namibia. Laws have to be uniform throughout the region, so that the investor will have nowhere to run to get away with these practices. But frankly speaking, we cannot do away with Chinese investment.”

Thomas Lekfeldt / MOMENT

Groundbreaking ceremony of the new Lusaka Stadium to be built by the Chinese company Shanghai Construction Group in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia. Here Zambia's President Rupiah Banda and Vice Premier of the State Council of China Hui Liangyu unveil the foundation stone of the stadium while surrounded by Zambian and Chinese officials and politicians. The stadium will have a capacity of around 50,000 spectators. The loan from China for its construction is $94 million, though some details are not public, and will finance both the construction of the new Lusaka Stadium and rehabilitation of the rundown Independence stadium in Lusaka. The groundbreaking ceremony took place during a visit of a Chinese delegation that was on a tour around five African countries in January 2011, led by Vice Premier of the State Council of China Hui Liangyu.

Thomas Lekfeldt / MOMENT

A Zambian worker digs a ditch in the Zambia-China Economic and Trade Coorperation Zone in Chambishi in the Copperbelt area of Zambia, the first zone of its kind in Africa. There are various incentives for companies that want to establish themselves in the zone, among them tax exemption. In the background is a sign announcing that this area is the zone, and on the right a Chinese worker.

Msnbc.com asked photographer Lekfeldt: What drew you to this subject in the first place – why did you feel this story needed to be told?

Lekfeldt: Well, in my view what is going on in Africa these years is nothing less than a revolution. For example China is now loaning more money to African countries than the World Bank. So for me personally it was extremely interesting to try and show what is going on in Africa right now. For the most part, stories from Africa in western media are about famines, (civil) wars or diseases like AIDS. Those are very important stories to tell of course. But so many other things are happening in Africa, and this quiet revolution is in my view one of the most important things happening there right now.

Thomas Lekfeldt / MOMENT

Xiao Na, 25, teaches Bronson Ludilo, 33, Chinese in the Chinese International School in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia. Bronson Ludilo is a computer engineer and is planning to go to China to study for a master's degree. Xiao Na has been in Africa for three months.

Did you face suspicion from Chinese or Zambian authorities when you approached them to photograph this story?

We did not have any problems in terms of dealing with the Zambian authorities when we did the story. They were for the most part very helpful. We got access to interview two different ministers, the permanent secretary from the ministry of mines was very helpful to us, and we were allowed to follow the official visit of a Chinese delegation to Zambia. The Chinese authorities were much more suspicious towards us though. Through official channels it was extremely difficult to get access to different Chinese companies, building sites and official offices. For example we did not manage to get an interview with the Chinese ambassador or any other embassy official for that matter. Every time we thought that we finally had an appointment they had a new excuse for not meeting us.

Thomas Lekfeldt / MOMENT

A group of Chinese workers from the Shanghai Construction Group of China stand next to a Zambian orchestra at the groundbreaking ceremony of the new Lusaka Stadium, a stadium that will be built by the Chinese company Shanghai Construction Group of China in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia.

(continued)...But on the other hand many of the Chinese people we met during our work were friendly and relatively helpful. It seemed that when we met them in person there was much less suspicion. And it was also my feeling that the suspicion towards us was much bigger at a higher political level than it was among "ordinary" Chinese people. In my view, what the Chinese authorities have yet failed to realize is that the more closed they are, the more suspicion towards them is going to arise. More openness would probably help to break down simplified views of the Chinese as the new colonizers in Africa. Of course there are many negative sides to the Chinese involvement in Africa, but there are also many positive sides. And those tend to drown in the general picture. Basically I think the Chinese would do themselves a favor if they became more open.

Read more at the Once Magazine blog and download the Once Magazine app here.

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There’s Black Friday. And Cyber Monday. What about “Photojournalism Thursday”?

OK, I'm kind of kidding, but a recent Facebook post reminded me to remind you Photobloggers that buying a print, or joining a Kickstarter campaign, or even hitting up your local newspaper for a print could be a great gift for someone on your list this holiday season.

Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times

White terns, albatross and several other species of birds make Midway Atoll their home as it makes a perfect nesting location with its remote Pacific Ocean location. However, danger lurks beyond the beauty with plastic trash inadvertently being consumed by nesting birds and ghost netting ensnaring endangered marine mammals. This image is part of the Los Angeles Times' 5-part series, Altered Oceans, which won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting.

One of the most frequent emails we get from our readers, especially after we publish The Week in Pictures or Animal Tracks is “Can I buy a copy of that image?” You can. Below, find a rundown of some ways to bring photography home.

Barbara Davidson / The Los Angeles Times

Hawa Barre Osman looks for a sign of life from her one-year-old severely malnourished child, Abdi Noor Ibrahim, inside the Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) therapeutic feeding center at the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya, Africa, July 2011. She walked for one month, with her 5 children, from Somali, to the camp.

Lights, camera, action…print:
By buying a print, you can help fund a documentary film. Chad Stevens, who is a photojournalist and University of North Carolina assistant professor, has been working for six years on a film about a grandmother who is caught between her region’s economic backbone of coal mining, and her environmental concerns about their methods. This isn’t a Hollywood production with million-dollar backing. It’s a self-funded endeavor, with an occasional grant helping along the way. Over the course of the project, other photojournalists have admired the work and wanted to help Chad, offering prints to sell to fund his film. Until Dec. 11, you can buy one of them at A Thousand Little Cuts Online Print Auction. It was Chad’s Facebook post that inspired this blog.

Some other print sales: Nuru Projects, Friends of Anton, Fraction Magazine, Wall Space, Collect Give.

Virtual photography
Does your favorite somebody have an iPad? Or maybe a slick new tablet is waiting for them under the tree? Get them started with some photography apps. Of course there are tried and true publications like National Geographic, but be sure and check out one of our partners, newcomer Once Magazine.

A crowd-funding stocking stuffer:
Have you heard of Kickstarter and Emphas.is? They are two crowd-funding web sites that are being utilized by photojournalists to fund their in-depth projects on important topics worldwide. What’s in it for you, Santa’s little helper? You can help make sure important stories are told. Also, by contributing to these campaigns, backers get to participate in the story creation and also receive gifts like prints or books. A journalist featured on msnbc.com last year is currently running a campaign:

Life without lights: 1.4 billion people – nearly a quarter of humanity lives without access to electricity. Photojournalist Peter DiCampo explores the economic impact of energy poverty and energy’s future.

Books, of course:
It goes without saying that photography books are a great gift. One to consider is Iraq|Perspectives by Benjamin Lowy, showing every day scenes from the war in Iraq captured through Humvee windows and night-vision goggles. Check out American Photo Magazine’s Best Photo Books of 2011 for some other options.

Did you see that shot?
As always, if you’ve spotted a great image on msnbc.com, you can buy a print from the photographer or agency who originally created the image. See our FAQ for more information…and happy holidays.

Msnbc.com continues its collaboration with Once magazine on the iPad. The following is excerpted from the November issue.

Melissa del Bosque, Once Magazine, writes: The steel fence zigs and zags from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico, a rust-colored scar on the American landscape. It passes through deserts and fertile farmland, backyards and wildlife refuges.

Eric White for Once Magazine

California, U.S.

For some politicians the fence is a talking point, embodying a promise to keep America safe. For many Americans who live near it, the fence, which covers 649 miles of the nearly 2,000-mile-long international border, speaks only of the failure of politics.

Since 2001, the Department of Homeland Security has turned the neighborhoods around the fence into militarized zones, replete with surveillance towers, the National Guard, sensors, and predator drones.

Eric White for Once Magazine

Arizona, U.S.

Their communities divided, those who live on either side of the fence simply call it “the wall.” This 18-foot-high wall is the first thing Dr. Eloisa Tamez, 75, sees when she looks out the back door of her modest home in El Calaboz, a rural community near Brownsville, at the southernmost tip of Texas. Border Patrol agents in green and white SUVs patrol the fence line in her backyard every day.

“I feel like I live in an occupied zone now,” she says. “I’m watched constantly by Border Patrol and asked where I’m going whenever I step on my own property.”

Eric White for Once Magazine

Arizona, U.S.

Photographer Eric T. White answers questions about the project:

Q: How did you decide on the topic of the border fence?
A: My family lived in New Mexico when I was very young. I remember going to El Paso, Texas, and crossing the border into Juarez. At that time, Juarez was not a scary place and we would stay for the day, eat at restaurants and do some shopping. So I guess that began my fascination with Mexico, since then I've been to every state in Mexico and been through nearly every single land border crossing with Mexico.

Q: How did you decide on the approach?
A: I think it important to show the physical barrier itself and not focus on the people involved, it seemed more honest to me. It's an incredibly difficult issue and I did not want to influence the viewers' point of view with my photographs.

Eric White for Once Magazine

State of Baja California, Mexico

Q: Anything surprising that you came across in making the photos?
A: There were many points in my travels when I came across artifacts left behind by people who had just crossed over the border --  baby bottles, personal items, clothes, etc. This was both deeply personal and slightly disturbing to me.

Eric White for Once Magazine

California, U.S.

Q: Did this project make you think differently about the border, the fence, or border politics in the United States?
A: Basically I realized how incredibly complicated this issue is; for every argument there is a counter argument. There is no right or wrong, only points of view.

Eric White for Once Magazine

California, U.S.

Read more at the Once Magazine blog, or download their app for the iPad.

Related content:

Story: Police find major drug tunnel under US Mexico border.

 Slideshow: Narco culture permeates Mexico, leaks across border

Video: Drug flow from Mexico on the rise

Excerpted from Once Magazine:

Spencer Strub writes: The one with pretty eyes almost got Curtis “Rebel” Rageur. All alligators' eyes are like cats’ eyes, marbled and iridescent, lined by the tapetum lucidum that flashes in the night. This particular alligator, however, had unusually beautiful eyes. (Editor's note: Some images in this post are graphic.)

Matt Eich / LUCEO for Once Magazine

A baited hook hangs low to the water of Shell Island, La., where commercial gator hunters Julius and Rebel are part way through the annual alligator hunting season. The state of Louisiana is home to the largest alligator population in the United States, estimated to be almost 2 million. Alligators are North America's largest reptiles and are considered a renewable resource in an industry that has thrived in America's deep south for centuries. The first large alligator harvests occurred during the early 1800s. The alligator farming industry in Louisiana alone annually harvests 140,000-170,000 gators which are valued at over $12,000,000.

Rageur couldn’t help but stop and stare. The catch had been relatively simple: no bayou-bank scramble, no reaching under the boat to free a stuck line, only a hard pull, a quick haul to lift the alligator from the water into the boat, and a single gunshot to the head. The gator lay prone and still, dead enough.

Matt Eich / LUCEO for Once Magazine

Rebel eyes the shore for a gator that had taken the baited line into the reeds while alligator hunting near Shell Island, La., on Sept. 19, 2009.

Rageur turned, breaking his eye-to-eye reverie to attend to the other side of the boat. With his legs splayed over the alligator’s mouth, he noticed the alligator start to move. “When they start moving around in the boat,” Rageur says, “you get nervous.” The alligator leapt upwards, but Rageur leapt faster, saving his legs and other vitals.

Matt Eich / LUCEO for Once Magazine

Rebel plants a second bullet in the head of a gator that kept moving after being hauled into the boat while hunting for alligators near Shell Island, La. Each gator is then tagged before being piled in the bottom of the boat.

Jaws closed on air. Rageur drew his handgun and fired again. And again. This experience isn’t entirely uncommon: Rageur says that an alligator that looks dead may revive, even after being shot in the head. He has had to shoot alligators as many as eight times to keep them down. “It gets a little hairy at times,” Rageur admits. 

Matt Eich / LUCEO for Once Magazine

Bodies of recently caught alligators line the bottom of the boat. Julius Gaudet, 62, and Rebel average nine gators a day but this day landed thirteen.

Msnbc.com is starting a partnership with Once Magazine. They attracted our attention on a couple of fronts. First, in an age of ever more bite-sized journalism, they were setting out with a contrarian goal; to publish long-form stories each month. Second, they wanted those stories, which touch on a wide range of topics, to rest on “visually arresting” imagery. And they’ve done that, which is why we wanted to share an excerpt from one of their first stories here.

Finally, the founders are trying to change the traditional publishing model. Thanks to the democratization of online delivery and app development, they are trying out their ideas with an iPad app. The free pilot issue debuted in September, followed by their first paid issue in October. If you decide to download their app, part of the revenue from that sale will be shared directly with the contributing photographers.

For the full stories and more from Once Magazine:

Once magazine online

Once magazine iPad app